Cheddar were knocked out of the FA Cup extra preliminary round by Bodmin, in injury time of a replay, after the Cheesemen had drawn in Cornwall.

Cheddar 2

Bodmin Town 3

(After extra-time)

Cheddar were knocked out of the FA Cup extra preliminary round in extra time of a replay, after the Cheesemen drew at Bodmin.

Roared on by a record 360-plus crowd, the hosts can hold their heads high following this tumultuous match at Bowdens Park.

Following Saturday’s match at Bodmin, which ended in a 2-2 draw, the opening exchanges of the replay were no place for the lesser spirited, with crunching tackles flying in as both sides fought for supremacy.

Having inspirational captain George Booth sent off for a technical offence on the stroke of half-time gave the hosts something of an uphill climb to contend with as the second half spun into action.

The Cheesemen battled incredibly well to keep the Peninsular League champions at bay, with defenders Craig Mawford and Lewis Matthews overlapping at will, and centre-back pairing Sam King and Shaun Lambert in imperious form.

Ricky Bennett was also getting through a colossal amount of work linking between defence and midfield. Cheddar goalkeeper Mike Dangerfield was in good form to thwart the big Bodmin front line on at least two occasions, before the Cornish side went ahead with just 15 minutes remaining.

Within two minutes of the restart Cheddar had drawn level, Mason Gardener closing down Bodmin keeper’s ill-judged clearance rebound from his knee and fly into the net.

Minutes later Craig Mawford hit a stunning 25-yard free kick which was pushed on to the post and on the stroke of full-time, Callum Ham sped into the box only to be cruelly upended, but the penalty claims were waved away by the referee.

In the 11th minute of extra time, Bodmin went ahead, but in injury time at the end of first period, Shaun Lambert powered in a header following Ricky Bennett’s free kick.

Five minutes into the second period and Bodmin added to their tally, and in the final minute of the match, Joe Grant was wrestled to the floor in the 18-yard box, but again the referee waved play on.

Cheddar caretaker manager Andy Wallis said: “I am absolutely gutted for the players, supporters and everyone involved with the club. We could not have asked for more from the players.

“This is the level we need to aspire to for the season ahead, the level of intensity and commitment from the team tonight was incredible and I am very proud of the boys.”

Tarnock Ford man of the match was Lewis Matthews.

Bodmin Town 2

Cheddar 2

The Cheesemen travelled to Bodmin’s Priory Park ground very much the underdogs, but came away with an excellent result.

Chris Coombs pace paying dividends for the visitors, while the twin centre-back pairing of Shaun Lambert and Sam King were at their best, backed up by Cheddar keeper Kieran Webster.

The visitors almost took the lead on 28 minutes when Lewis Matthews hit a rasping drive against the upright from 12 yards, the best chance of the first-half.

The match opened up after the break, with Robbi Maggs in the thick of things. The Cheesemen deservedly went ahead on 64 minutes, Coombs hitting a fierce drive past the despairing keeper following excellent work by Maggs.

Nine minutes later and Cheddar went further ahead when an impressive Maggs-Coombs combination move found Tom Manning in space and his deceptive lay-off found Craig Mawford, who netted with a fine shot.

With eight minutes remaining, the home side scored from a free kick just outside the box, and in the dying seconds Bodmin netted the equaliser from close range.

Tesco’s (Cheddar) man of the match was Craig Mawford.